Zetterberg line tough in playoffs for Red Wings

AP PhotoThe line of Johan Franzen, center, Henrik Zetterberg, left, and Dan Cleary has outplayed and often shut down the opposition's top line in the playoffs.

DETROIT -- When it comes to multitasking, nobody has done better this postseason than the Detroit Red Wings' line of Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen and Dan Cleary.

Not only are they carrying the club offensively, they also continue to outplay, and often times shut down, the opposition's top line in the playoffs.

They, along with defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom, frustrated the Columbus Blue Jackets' Rick Nash in the first round. They matched up well against the Anaheim Ducks' big, physical top line, centered by Ryan Getzlaf, in the previous round.

And they got off to a tremendous start against young stars Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the Chicago Blackhawks.

"That's one of the reasons they're one of the best lines put together, especially how responsible they are in their own zone," Lidstrom said. "They come back hard and give opponents less time with the puck. When they have the puck, they're not throwing it away, they're hanging onto it and (forcing) the other team to play defense."

Franzen and Zetterberg combined for four goals, seven points and a plus-9 rating in Detroit's 5-2 victory Sunday. Kane and Toews had no points and combined for three shots (all by Toews in the third period) and a minus-6 rating.

Franzen (18 points), Zetterberg (16 points) and Cleary (11 points, tied with Lidstrom) lead the team in scoring.

"We always try to keep our feet moving, protect each other, always support the puck, be responsible with the puck," Cleary said. "They're going to get their opportunities, you just try to limit the quality of it, especially Kane. He's got great vision, great pass, good shot, real crafty, little player. Toews is a competitor. We just got to try to out-will him."

The Blackhawks must fare much better in this matchup to get a different result in Game 2 tonight at Joe Louis Arena.

"We're trying our best to key on those guys and not let them do the things they normally do in the regular season, but that's one of the reasons those players are so well-respected, they play well on both sides of the puck," Toews said. "In some cases, we tried plays in the offensive zone that weren't there. It's better just to keep the puck and work harder to protect it and not give up possession as easy as we did."

Kane wants to take a page out of Detroit's book and focus on defense, hoping to create offense that way.

"Every time I got the puck it seemed like they had two or three guys collapse on me, so I had to try to find the open guys," Kane said. "And when you're out there against the Zetterberg line, they're going to try to have the puck. So for myself, just try to worry about playing defense first, and when we get the puck, do our thing."

The Blackhawks' strength is their speed. But the Red Wings are just as fast. That's why this appears to be better matchup for Detroit than the bigger, more physical Ducks. But Franzen said it can be more dangerous playing against smaller, speedier players, especially if they get space early.

"Getzlaf and (Corey) Perry, we can always catch them on second effort, but if you miss Kane and Toews, they're going to be gone," Franzen said. "It's probably more physically challenging for me dealing with the smaller guys. I've got to move my feet a little bit more. It's harder work."

The Red Wings were shorthanded only once in Game 1, but Franzen said it is harder to avoid penalties defending smaller players.

"Against a big guy, he's leaning on you, you're leaning on him, so you usually don't get called," Franzen said. "But if you're behind on a small guy and try to push him or put your hand on him or your arm around him, you're going to get called right away."

Defense comes naturally for Zetterberg, who was a strong two-way player in Sweden before he came to the Red Wings in 2002-03. When Cleary and Franzen joined the club after the lockout in 2005-06, they honed their defensive game by playing on the third and fourth lines, checking and killing penalties.

"When your top offensive line is also one of your top defensive groupings, there's not more you can ask for," Red Wings defenseman Brad Stuart said. "For guys that are on the second, third and fourth lines, they see that top line working just as hard on the defensive side of the puck as the offensive side. How can that not trickle down to everybody else?"